U.S. President Donald Trump said talks in Cairo between mediators and Hamas leaders on Thursday (July 30) have led to a phased disarmament agreement in Gaza, but a Hamas official described the deal as a draft and U.S. officials said Israel was skeptical the militant Palestinian group would surrender its weapons.

"Today, the Board of Peace reached a HISTORIC agreement for the COMPLETE DISARMAMENT of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza," Trump said in a social media post, adding that the disarmament would come in phases. "This is a monumental step toward lasting PEACE and SECURITY."

The agreement was a critical step towards Gaza being governed by a new Palestinian government that will work closely with the so-called Board of Peace, Trump said. "At the same time, Israel will have the security it deserves, with Gaza no longer used as a base for terror attacks," he added.

The Israeli embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump's announcement.

A Hamas source told Reuters the "draft agreement" stipulates that heavy weapons would only be stored and kept under the control of a Palestinian administration, and the weapons cannot be transferred to Israel.

"We will not take any action regarding disarmament prior to Israel's withdrawal from the Strip," Ghazi Hamad, a member of the Hamas negotiating team, told Al Jazeera.

A U.S. official on Thursday told reporters that Israel is "very skeptical that Hamas will disarm."

"We're very confident they will adhere to it," the U.S. official added. "If they don't, obviously President Trump would be very, very disappointed."

There were also questions about how long the process would take. A Board of Peace official gave an estimate of 200 to 320 days, but a U.S. official played down that timeline.

An Israeli official, who declined to be identified, said before Trump's announcement Israel had rejected a proposal.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

1. VARIOUS OF ARMED MILITANTS RUNNING THROUGH TUNNELS IN A VIDEO RELEASED BY HAMAS IN JULY 2014

UNKNOWN LOCATION, GAZA (ARCHIVE - AUGUST 18, 2014) (REUTERS - Access all)

2. VARIOUS OF MILITANTS FROM IZZ EL-DEEN AL-QASSAM BRIGADES, THE ARMED WING OF HAMAS, WALKING IN TUNNEL

3. MILITANTS GOING THROUGH DOOR

4. AL-QASSAM BRIGADES LOGO WITH TEXT READING (Arabic): "SPECIAL UNIT"

5. WEAPONS

6. VARIOUS OF MILITANTS IN TUNNEL

GAZA CITY, GAZA (ARCHIVE - DECEMBER 29, 2020) (REUTERS - Access all)

7. VARIOUS OF ROCKETS BEING LAUNCHED INTO THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA DURING A MILITARY EXERCISE BY PALESTINIAN MILITANT GROUPS INCLUDING HAMAS AND THE ISLAMIC JIHAD

8. PALESTINIAN MILITANT MEMBERS FROM DIFFERENT FACTIONS DURING DRILL

9. PALESTINIAN MILITANTS IN AN INFLATABLE DINGHY

10. PALESTINIAN MILITANT FIRING AT RANGE / EXPLOSION ON BEACH / MILITANTS ADVANCING AND FIRING ON BEACH

11. MILITANTS PULLING MAN ON SAND

12. EXPLOSIONS ON SHORE

13. MILITANTS ON SHORE DURING DRILL

GAZA CITY, GAZA (ARCHIVE - DECEMBER 14, 2022) (REUTERS - Access all) (MUTE)

14. DRONE FOOTAGE OF PEOPLE ATTENDING RALLY OF HAMAS' 35TH ANNIVERSARY

15. DRONE FOOTAGE OF PROCESSION AT RALLY

GAZA CITY, GAZA (ARCHIVE - DECEMBER 14, 2022) (REUTERS - Access - all)

16. VARIOUS OF MILITANTS ON STAGE / FLAG OF IRAN IN BACKGROUND

UNKNOWN LOCATION (ARCHIVE - RELEASED ON OCTOBER 9, 2023) (QASSAM MILITARY MEDIA - Access all) (MUTE)

17. VARIOUS OF MILITANTS PREPARING AIR DEFENCE SYSTEM'S BASES AND PUTTING ROCKETS AND SHELLS IN BASE, IN A VIDEO RELEASED BY THE QASSAM BRIGADES SHOWING WHAT IT DESCRIBED AS ITS AIR DEFENCE SYSTEM ‘MUTBER 1’

18. MILITANT USING PHONE

19. MILITANTS IN OPERATION ROOM

20. VARIOUS OF AIR DEFENCE SYSTEM

21. ROCKETS IN SKY

UNKNOWN LOCATION (ARCHIVE - RELEASED ON OCTOBER 11, 2023) (QASSAM MILITARY MEDIA - Access all) (PART MUTE)

22. DRONE BEING LAUNCHED, IN A VIDEO RELEASED BY THE QASSAM BRIGADES SHOWING WHAT IT DESCRIBED AS DRONES BEING LAUNCHED TOWARDS 'HOSTILE TARGETS '

23. DRONE IN THE SKY

24. VARIOUS OF DRONES BEING LAUNCHED

25. (MUTE) GENERAL VIEW OF AREA, PLUMES OF SMOKE

UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION (ARCHIVE - RELEASED OCTOBER 31, 2023) (AL-QASSAM BRIGADES VIA TELEGRAM - Access all) (MUTE)

26. VARIOUS OF FOUR PEOPLE IN DIVING SUITS CARRYING TORPEDO INTO SEA, IN A VIDEO RELEASED BY THE QASSAM BRIGADES SHOWING WHAT IT DESCRIBED AS TORPEDOES BEING MOVED INTO SEA AIMED AT NAVAL TARGETS IN ‘AL-AQSA FLOOD’ ASSAULT ON ISRAEL

27. VARIOUS OF DIVERS PUSHING TORPEDO FURTHER OUT TO SEA

28. TORPEDO BENEATH SURFACE OF SEA

29. AERIAL FOOTAGE OF TORPEDO STARTING TO MOVE ACROSS SEA

GAZA CITY, GAZA (ARCHIVE - FEBRUARY 1, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all) (MUTE)

30. DRONE FOOTAGE SHOWING HAMAS MILITANTS STANDING ON STAGE, SET UP FOR HOSTAGE HANDOVER BY THE SEA, HOLDING PICTURES OF KILLED HAMAS FIGHTERS AND OFFICIALS

31. DRONE FOOTAGE OF MILITANTS STANDING / MILITANTS IN CARS BEHIND

32. DRONE FOOTAGE OF HAMAS MILITANTS STANDING IN VEHICLES AND AROUND STAGE

AL-BUREIJ, GAZA (ARCHIVE - FEBRUARY 7, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

33. COFFIN OF SENIOR HAMAS DEPUTY MILITARY COMMANDER MARWAN ISSA BEING CARRIED BY HAMAS MILITANTS IN A FUNERAL PROCESSION

34. HAMAS MILITANTS HOLDING RIFLES AND CHANTING (Arabic): 'God is Greatest and praise be to God'

35. MASKED HAMAS MILITANTS HOLDING WEAPONS

36. VARIOUS OF FUNERAL PROCESSION / COFFIN BEING CARRIED THROUGH STREETS